Apparatus for the inductive heating of oil sand and heavy oil deposits by way of current-carrying conductors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10000999-B2
Application number	US-201414285767-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 23, 2014
Priority date	Mar 6, 2008
Publication date	Jun 19, 2018
Grant date	Jun 19, 2018

Abstract

An apparatus for the inductive heating of oil sand and heavy oil deposits by way of current-carrying conductors is provided. The conductors include individual conductor groups, wherein the conductor groups are designed in periodically repeating sections of defined length defining a resonance length, and wherein two or more of the conductor groups are capacitively coupled. In this way, each conductor can be insulated and can include a single wire.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for the inductive heating of oil sand and heavy oil deposits, comprising:
a plurality of current-carrying conductors which are grouped into individual conductor groups, each conductor group having multiple current-carrying conductors,
wherein the individual conductor groups are formed in periodically repeated portions of defined length that define a resonance length,
wherein two or more of the individual conductor groups are capacitively coupled along a longitudinal direction based on the resonance length, and form a multifilament or multiband or multifilm conductor structure, and
a tensile strength enhancing mechanical reinforcement device disposed in a central conductor-free region of the apparatus.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein each of the conductors is individually insulated and includes a single wire.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein each of the conductors includes a plurality of insulated wires that form a ‘HF litz wire’.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3 , wherein two of said conductor groups, each comprising 1000 to 5000 filaments are provided which include resonance lengths ranging from approximately 20 m to approximately 100 m.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3 , wherein a capacitively compensated multifilament conductor of said conductor groups is formed of transposed or woven individual conductors is formed in such a way that each individual conductor within the resonance length is found the same number of times on each radius of the apparatus.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3 , wherein a compensated multifilament conductor of said conductor groups is formed of a plurality of conductor sub-groups that are arranged about a common center.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 6 , wherein the individual compensated conductor sub-groups include stranded solid or HF litz wires.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 6 , wherein a plurality of cross-sections of the plurality of conductor sub-groups are round or hexagonal.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the plurality of conductor sub-groups are segment-shaped.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein plastics material fiber cables or glass fiber cables or steel cables are used to provide the mechanical reinforcement device.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the central conductor-free region within the cross-section of a compensated multifilament conductor of said conductor groups includes a means for cooling.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11 , wherein a flowing liquid is provided or may be introduced as the means for cooling.

13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 12 , wherein temperature sensors are arranged in a central region and may be used to monitor and/control a current feed and/a liquid cooler, wherein the temperature sensors comprise glass fiber sensors or Bragg fibers.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a defined inductance and a defined capacitance per unit length of each of the plurality of current carrying conductors is provided in such a way that the apparatus may be operated in a serially compensated manner at a previously determined frequency.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the plurality of current carrying conductors are inserted in a plastics material pipe.

16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 15 , wherein a lubricant is provided between the plastics material pipe and the plurality of current carrying conductors.

17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 15 , wherein a liquid of low electric conductivity or a lubricating liquid or insulating liquid is provided during operation between the plurality of current carrying conductors and the plastics material pipe.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 16 , wherein a coolant is pumped into a gap between the plastics material pipe and the conductor groups and into the central conductor-free region in opposite directions.

Assignees

• Siemens Ag

Inventors

• Diehl Dirk

Classifications

• H05B2214/03

  Heating of hydrocarbons · CPC title

• H05B6/105

  using a susceptor · CPC title

• E21B36/04

  using electrical heaters · CPC title

• H05B6/108

  for heating a fluid · CPC title

• E21B43/2401 Primary

  by means of electricity · CPC title